第495章

On the 6th of July， in all towns of 50，000 souls and over， they strike down the National Guard by discharging its staff， "an aristocratic corporation，" says a petition，[27] "a sort of modern feudality composed of traitors， who seem to have formed a plan for directing public opinion as they please." Early in August，[28] they strike into the heart of the National Guard by suppressing special companies， grenadiers， and chasseurs， recruited amongst well-to-do-people， the genuine elite， stripped of its uniform， reduced to equality， lost in the mass， and now， moreover， finding its 'ranks degraded by a mixture of interlopers， federates， and men armed with pikes. Finally， to complete the pell-mell， they order that the palace guard be hereafter composed daily of citizens taken from the sixty battalions，[29] so that the chiefs may no longer know their men nor the men their chiefs；so that no one may place confidence in his chief， in his subordinate， in his neighbor， or in himself； so that all the stones of the human dike may be loosened beforehand， and the barrier crumble at the first onslaught. -- On the other hand， they have taken care to provide the insurrection with a fighting army and an advanced guard. By another series of legislative acts and municipal ordinances， they authorize the assemblage of the Federates at Paris； they allow them pay and military lodgings；[30] they allow them to organize under a central committee sitting at the Jacobin club， and to take their instructions from that club. Of these new-comers， two-thirds， genuine soldiers and true patriots， set out for the camp at Soissons and for the frontier；one-third of them， however， remain at Paris，[31] perhaps 2，000， the rioters and politicians， who， feasted， entertained， indoctrinated， and each lodged with a Jacobin， become more Jacobin than their hosts， and incorporate themselves with the revolutionary battalions， so as to serve the good cause with their guns.[32] -- Two squads， late comers， remain separate， and are only the more formidable； both are dispatched by the towns on the sea-cost in which， four months before this， "twenty-one capital acts of insurrection had occurred， all unpunished， and several under sentence of the maritime jury."[33] The first， numbering 300 men， comes from Brest，* where the municipality， as infatuated as those of Marseilles and Avignon， engages in armed expeditions against its neighbors； where popular murder is tolerated；* where M. de la Jaille is nearly killed ；* where the head of M. de la Patry is borne on a pike；* where veteran rioters compose the crews of the fleet，* where "workers paid by the State， clerks， masters， non-commission officers， converted into agitators， political stump-speakers， movers， and critics of the administration，" ask only to be given roles to perform on a more conspicuous stage.

The second troop， summoned from Marseilles by the Girondins， Rebecqui， and Barbaroux，[34] comprises 516 men， intrepid， ferocious adventurers， from everywhere， either Marseilles or abroad， Savoyards， Italians， Spaniards， driven out of their country， almost all of the vilest class， or gaining a livelihood by infamous pursuits， "hit-men and their henchmen of evil haunts，" used to blood， quick to strike， good cut-throats， picked men out of the bands that had marched on Aix， Arles， and Avignon， the froth of that froth which， for three years， in the Comtat and in the Bouches-du-Rh？ne， boiled over the useless barriers of the law. -- The very day they reach Paris they show what they can do.[35] Welcomed with great pomp by the Jacobins and by Santerre， they are conducted， for a purpose， to the Champs-Elysées， into a tavern， near the restaurant in which the grenadiers of the Filles St. Thomas， bankers， brokers， leading men， well-known for their attachment to a monarchical constitution， were dining in a body， as announced several days in advance. The mob which had formed a convoy for the Marseilles battalion， gathers before the restaurant， shouts， throws mud， and then lets fly a volley of stones ； the grenadiers draw their sabers. Forthwith a shout is heard just in front of them， à nous les Marseillais！ upon which the gang jump out of the windows with true southern agility， clamber across the ditches， fall upon the grenadiers with their swords， kill one and wound fifteen. -- No début could be more brilliant. The party at last possesses men of action；[36] and they must be kept within reach！ Men who do such good work， and so expeditiously， must be well posted near the Tuileries. The mayor， consequently， on the night of the 8th of August， without informing the commanding general， solely on his own authority， orders them to leave their barracks in the Rue Blanche and take up their quarters， with their arms and cannon， in the barracks belonging to the Cordeliers.[37]